Say you're an incoming freshman for the 2024 season ... the schedules are out ... the new 12 team playoff looms .... it's an exciting time.

But what will this sport look like by the end of your senior season? What will the playoff look like after the two year trial we have in 25 and 25? What will the conferences look like? Is Florida State SEC or BIG bound or are they stuck in the ACC? Does the ACC even exist anymore? Is Notre Dame still an independent? Have the Big 2 (SEC and BIG) broken away and formed their own superdivision? Is the NCAA still relevant at all or is there a new governing body?

Pretty much anytime over the decades an incoming freshman had a pretty good idea what the sport would look like over the course of their career. But that isn't the case now. So what do you think college football looks like when the incoming freshman or seniors?

Aggies win the first semi pro college national championship. Everyone declares college football is dead.

A&M is heading into the season with a chance to 3-peat the NC

It was buried a few years back. Players jumping teams for more money. Schools trying to buy super teams. And officials still playing games with an inept NCAA that will protect its boys. Don't need a crystal ball to see this one coming.

Oh and for a few of you here how did I forget to mention the DJ's? Yep college football is dunski.

BMX Bandit said:

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oblong ball made of pigskin most likely

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I predict they will have NFC sensors in the ball to accurately track it

I believe we see serious efforts to reign in the portal and NIL along with a hold on realignment. There will be some sort of committee or CFB president put in place. The most crucial part of that position will be who exactly does this committee/president represent? Their are three groups that will be lobbying for power: TV networks, coaches, and boosters.
The networks will want one of their loyal stooges like Sankey or some other suit that represents them, they will continue to push towards full on semi NFL style anarchy. The coaches will want one of their own such as a Saban or Mack Brown that can put practical solutions in place for portal and movement and to an extent NIL. Boosters could be a factor too, men with lots of money and political connections are going to get very tired very quick of funding rosters for $10 million a year with no return and all the players can simply leave at a whim; these guys can collective come together and say no more money until systems are put in place.
I believe we see things get sorted out. It will be interesting when Amazon and Netflix and HBO start to get in the mix for broadcasting games.

Turf96 said:

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Oh and for a few of you here how did I forget to mention the DJ's? Yep college football is dunski.

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Stop complaining. Where else can you get into a crowded nightclub for $1,000 ?

It will be first full season in which the congressionally authorized college football oversight board adopts restrictions on transfers. they are still working out the details on revenue sharing with the players

The 12 team playoff will still be in effect, but all the buzz will be about the new SEC v B16 playoff starting in 2029. FSU fans trying to convince themselves how great a trip to iowa city is going to be that season, while miami fans are still in awe they are going to the SEC.

Vanderbilt, duke, Stanford, wake forest, are still working on a name for their nerd conference and trying to decide whether to let SMU and Baylor join.

W said:

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Georgia finally plays at Kyle Field

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What??? And go against a time honored SEC tradition??? Is nothing sacred anymore???

This is a longer outlook but the seeds will be planted (Or have already been planted) for English Premier League or MLB style tiered leagues and the end of Amateurism in Football at least. 3 tiers with 30-32 teams with relegation most likely not going to happen, but would be an interesting wrinkle.

Not sure where that leads us to with affiliations to universities but I bet there will be an affiliation and portions of the TV deals used to pay for the facilities and other things involved.

The TV deals would have to be massive to cover the leagues and their affiliated university costs and should generate more revenue than in the previous conference set ups. Albeit it, in lower tiers/leagues they may generate a substantially less payout, but it could maybe pay around the same amount they were achieving in the NCAA conference setup.

For 2023 the NFL pulled in around $12.39B from TV deals and over the next decade each team will rake in around $3.92B which is $392M/YR. I don't expect the league below the NFL to generate as much as the NFL, but I could see maybe a 40-70% of that being generated fairly quickly.

These leagues could continue on their Thursday/Saturday games and pay their athletes with a salary cap (To promote some type of fairness) and the remaining monies left over could go to pay the universities for utilizing/building facilities, paying for the athletes room/board and "education", and other expenses.

It seems pretty obvious that there will be a two-conference league made up of the SEC, B1G and some additional number of schools that make sense to the wallet-holders. I don't see the monikers SEC or B1G going away as too many powerful people are attached to those entities that don't want to lose that power. Athletes will be paid a cut of the revenue. Whether this will entail the term "employment" officially or not is probably being decided by a small army of lawyers right now. In exchange, there will be some level of contractual duties a player has to their team (i.e. have to stay for X number of years, or pay $Y penalty).

The playoff will look drastically different and may not include teams outside of the new SEC and B1G. This will not be a major issue to the majority of the sport as interest in the early portion of the playoff wanes as it expands more and more. Bowl games surprisingly do not die off, but are sprinkled over a wider range of dates throughout the playoff calendar. Also, somebody finally grows a brain and schedules college playoff games on Saturdays.

Popular ideas that are not implemented are: NIL salary caps (though the importance will be lessened slightly by the items discussed above), removing the student-athlete requirement (colleges realize how much money they would lose if this happens), and any kind of relegation (though some current SEC and B1G schools may not make the cut for whatever league they create).

I predict someone on texags will be complaining that college football is ruined and they just aren't as interested as they used to be.

Someone will certainly bump this in 2027 and, for those who remain alive, it will be a funny moment reading the comments and chuckle at this one

14 team playoff dismissing 16 in 2027. Mainly to improve access for Big Ten and SEC.

Congress does nothing or worst yet passes a law making the NCAA antitrust immune.

(NIL is allowed by state law and there is no sovereign immunity doctrine that allows the feds to federalize it and definitely is NOT a federal right in the Constitution…)

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story?id=39572477&_slug_=cfp-officials-discuss-expanding-14-team-playoff-2026

Nick Saban will be the commissioner of NCAA Football (or whatever the guy in charge is called).

The Penn Quakers football program wins their first of many national championships. Donald Trump began bankrolling the NIL program for his college.

Aggies are now part of a Saudi backed super league and we now play at Saudi Americo Stadium at Kyle Field.

cupofjoe04 said:

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Nick Saban will be the commissioner of NCAA Football (or whatever the guy in charge is called).

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I saw this article on ESPN's website today, which discusses it. Nick Saban wants to be voice for change in college football - ESPN

By 2027 for me at least Saturdays will look a whole lot like a dove field, deer stand and a bay boat on the flats. Every year since 2020 I lose a little more interest in sports in general.

It will look like college basketball with one and dones. Won't know 3/4 of the roster every year.

Texas A & M will go 8-4. Kyle Field will be full for home games

halfastros81 said:

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Texas A & M will go 8-4. Kyle Field will be full for home games

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And we will be claiming 2028 is the year we finally win a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

JWinTX said:

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halfastros81 said:

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Texas A & M will go 8-4. Kyle Field will be full for home games

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And we will be claiming 2028 is the year we finally win a spot in the SEC Championship Game.

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Will the conference title games still exist by then? At least for the SEC and BIG? There is chatter to do away with them in the playoff era and add a 13th game for everyone, lol.

Hunting and fishing are sports. JK , I'm right there with you.

We will of course be 8-4

Players will be drinking Brawndo and Dwayne Mountain Dew Camacho will be president.

Colleges will be able to trade players. Former players who left early for the pros and still had eligibility are welcomed back whenever they want to complete their eligibility.

tu rejoins the 36 team Big 12 after three horrible seasons in the SEC where they are unable to secure a single SEC conference game victory finishing 0-26 in SEC matchups. Georgia finally appears on the 2027 schedule with their first game at Kyle Field.

Mac94 said:

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.... what does college football look like in 2027?

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Not sure, but Trump will be hosting the 2026 champions in the White House with platters of McDonald's and Arby's sandwiches!

It'll still be awesome. Everything going on off the field may not be ideal for the casual fan, but the sport itself is still my favorite by far.